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The Cycles of Life

By: Bill Burridge Click author's name for more of his/her articles

"In all things there is a law of cycles."

- Publius Cornelius Tacitus (55-117 AD, Roman Historian)

Its hard to conceive of a business that's as fulfilling as life coaching. Helping people to reach for their dreams is about as meaningful as it gets.

The best clients are very often those who lack a little self-belief or the tools to help them realise their true potential, while being blessed with a generally positive disposition. For these people, personal growth can often be exponential when they come to terms with their own power.

Far more challenging for the life coach are those clients who feel they've hit the bottom of a cycle and can see no way out. Such people are often convinced that life is out to get them - that nothing can go right no matter how hard, or what, they try.

Sprouting on about the power of positive thinking is rarely the best way for a coach to gain the respect of someone who thinks that a higher power has got their number.

A more effective approach, in my view, is to try and help the client understand that a cycle is, after all, just that - a cycle. By definition, cycles have bottoms and tops. The trick is to shift the client's outlook away from the short-term 'here and now' and the pain they are currently experiencing, towards the longer-term and what could be.

After all, isn't it true that nothing in life is permanent? Isn't it true that we all experience 'up' and 'down' cycles in our lives - even if the amplitude of the ups and downs differs, sometimes markedly, from one human being to another?

One of my favourite books - and one that I credit for having got me started on a new journey in life - is Graham Hancock's bestseller, 'Fingerprints of the Gods' in which he presents compelling evidence for the existence of ancient yet highly advanced civilizations on Earth many thousands of years ago.

I first read Fingerprints of the Gods some twenty years ago. The whole book intrigued me enormously but my imagination was particularly triggered by his explanation of a phenomenon called 'precession'.

Prior to reading Hancock's work I had, like everyone else, known that the Earth spins relentlessly on its axis, taking 24 hours from sunrise to sunrise and that the Earth orbits the sun in never-ending cycles, each lasting just over 365 days.

What I was completely unaware of was the existence of another, far lengthier, grand cycle that slowly plays out as the Earth continues its heavenly dance around the centre of our solar system. That cycle - the precessionary cycle - is caused by a very slight 'wobble' that exists in the Earth's axial rotation.

Imagine for a moment the Earth's axis as a huge kebab stick piercing the globe through the poles and around which the Earth is constantly rotating. Now imagine that, due to a tiny wobble, the ends of the kebab stick itself are describing a small circle as they rotate, very slowly, in a direction opposite to the rapid spin of the Earth. (Anyone who has ever nudged a rapidly spinning gyroscope will know what I mean).

This effect is called precession and the precessionary cycle takes - wait for it - a full 26,000 years to play itself out! As it does so, we experience a change, so gradual as to be imperceptible, in our view of the star systems on our horizon. Incredibly, this almost unnoticeable wobble results in the introduction of a different astrological age every 2,100 years or so!

As I write, we are on the cusp of two astrological ages as we painstakingly transition from Pisces into Aquarius.

So, what exactly does my brief 'foray' into the world of astrology have to do with life coaching?

Well, the point I want to make is that our lives are regulated by cycles - from 'blink-of-the-eye' in duration to unimaginably long. The point of these cycles, to my mind, is to present us with variation or contrast within an overall framework of constancy.

That might sound like something of a contradiction - but imagine a world without cycles. It would be completely static, without variation and with a constancy that was permanent, never ending and mind numbingly boring.

I risk serious understatement when I say that our universe and our world is a fascinating and amazing place. The cyclical nature of our environment offers us excitement and opportunity through the access it provides to unlimited variety. At the same time we are provided with the comfort and reassurance that comes with knowing change is never permanent.

Take time out to explore and appreciate how every aspect of your life is governed by cycles and you will ultimately lose your fear of change. Instead, you will embrace and welcome it in the knowledge that no matter how much things change, they still stay the same.

Swimmers who try to fight strong currents eventually lose their energy and perish. Those who allow themselves to be swept along with the currents become effortlessly transported to a calmer place from where they can use their conserved energy to find their way safely back to shore.

The cycles of life are like currents in the sea. Fight the changes they present and you'll quickly be sapped of your energy and will to live. Embrace the opportunity for change, however, and you'll soon find new horizons opening up in a surprisingly reassuring way.

Article Source: ABC Article Directory

About The Author: Bill Burridge is owner and founder of New Insights Africa, a life coach training company dedicated to the development of a vibrant network of high quality, independent life coaches, inspired to bring personal freedom, confidence and growth to people from all walks of life in South Africa. The company's core product is a unique, high quality, home study certification program in life coaching. www.life-coach-training-sa.com